The circle is not broken, as the Grand Ole Opry continued its 94-year history last Friday, playing its 4,915th consecutive Saturday night broadcast on its flagship radio home, 650 AM WSM. The show was also heard on opry.com and wsmonline.com, Opry and WSM mobile apps, and SiriusXM Satellite Radio. Though performed without an audience in the Opry House, thousands of fans tuned in to a live stream via Facebook and YouTube. In breaks between artists performing acoustically on the Opry circle, Opry announcer Mike Terry acknowledged fans tuned in from around the world and sharing stories of past Opry visits and favorite Opry moments. Friday’s performers included Bill Anderson, Mandy Barnett, Michael Cleveland & Flamekeeper, Jeannie Seely, Connie Smith and Sam Williams.
Amid current COVID-19 concerns, the Opry, has paused all shows with a live Opry House audience through April 4. During this time, however, the Opry will continue live Saturday night broadcasts without an audience in attendance. Fans are invited to follow the Opry on social media and visit opry.com for show and tune in updates.